About the Book

Book: Dueling Hearts

Author: Vickie McDonough

Genre: Christian Historical Romance

Release Date: November 11, 2025

She blames him for her brother’s death, and he’s determined to make amends. But as family secrets and forbidden longing pull them closer, they must choose between pride and the chance to heal.

Carina Zimmer has spent years hating the Bishops for destroying her family. Now managing Tanglewood Plantation and caring for her bedridden father, she wants nothing to do with Reed Bishop—the man who killed her brother. But when Reed returns from medical school and begins treating the injured and vulnerable, Carina can’t ignore the compassion behind his actions or the growing pull between them.

Reed Bishop came home to start a medical practice and make amends for past mistakes. But when he treats an injured slave at a neighboring plantation, he comes face-to-face with Carina Zimmer—the sister of the man he believes he killed in a duel years ago. He never expected to fall for the fiery woman struggling to keep her family’s plantation alive. Yet every encounter with Carina challenges his guilt and deepens his desire to earn her trust.

As secrets surface and loyalties are tested, Carina and Reed must decide if love is worth risking everything—even the legacy of those they’ve sworn to honor.

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

Vickie McDonough is the CBA, EPCA and Amazon best-selling author of 54 books and novellas. Vickie grew up wanting to marry a rancher, but instead, she married a computer geek who is scared of horses. She now lives out her dreams penning romance stories about ranchers, cowboys, lawmen, and others living in the Old West. Vickie’s books have won numerous awards including the Booksellers Best, OWFI Best Fiction Novel Award, the Inspirational Readers’ Choice awards. When she’s not writing, Vickie enjoys reading, making cards, gardening, and traveling.

More from Vickie

While I was researching ideas for Dueling Hearts, my third book in the Windswept Weddings series, I stumble across some information about dueling in America. I hadn’t read a Christian book that had characters who were in a duel, so I thought that would be an interesting premise. Reed Bishop, my hero in Dueling Hearts, is the grandson of Cooper Reed from Secrets of the Heart. He finds himself forced into a duel on the eve of his leaving for Scotland to become a doctor. I’ll let you read the book to find out what happens.

Dueling in the United States had mostly been outlawed by 1850. The Broderick-Terry duel, fought in California in 1859, is often considered the last notable duel in the United States. U.S. Senator David Broderick and California Supreme Court Chief Justice David S. Terry engaged in a pistol duel near Lake Merced, resulting in Broderick’s death. Sadly, the two were once friends.

Here’s what Dueling Hearts is about:

She blames him for her brother’s death, and he’s determined to make amends. But as family secrets and forbidden longing pull them closer, they must choose between pride and the chance to heal.

Carina Zimmer has spent years hating the Bishops for destroying her family. Now managing Tanglewood Plantation and caring for her bedridden father, she wants nothing to do with Reed Bishop—the man who killed her brother. But when Reed returns from medical school a more mature man and begins treating the injured and vulnerable, Carina can’t ignore the compassion behind his actions or the growing pull between them.

Reed Bishop came home to start a medical practice and make amends for past mistakes. But when he treats an injured slave at a neighboring plantation, he comes face-to-face with Carina Zimmer—the sister of the man he killed in a duel years ago. He never expected to fall for the fiery woman struggling to keep her family’s plantation alive. Yet every encounter with Carina challenges his guilt and deepens his desire to earn her trust.

As secrets surface and loyalties are tested, Carina and Reed must decide if love is worth risking everything—even the legacy of those they’ve sworn to honor

Interview with Vickie

When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?

I’ve always been an avid reader, but I first decided that I might want to write a book was after two stories started running through my mind. I wrote them both down just to get them out of my head. At that point I started to consider that I could actually write a book. I studied the craft of writing, joined several writers group, and started attending writers conferences. I learned about all aspects of writing.

How long does it take you to write a book?

It depends on the length of the book. A trade fiction that is 75,000 usually takes 6 – 8 months. A novella that is 25,000 words would usually take 4-6 weeks.

What is your real-life work schedule like when writing? 

I normally write between 10 – 2 each day, unless I’m on deadline. Then I write and write like crazy to get finished. Then there’s the cooking, cleaning, and laundry that all wives and mothers deal with.

What are your favorite books to read?

Historical Christian Western books set in the late 1800s.

Next is modern-day suspense books.

When did you write your first book and how old were you?

I was 47 when I first started writing. The youngest of my four sons was ten then, and I had two teenagers and a twenty-two-year-old.

How do you create your main characters? 

It varies a lot. Sometimes I get the idea of a character’s story like I did in my novella called Laney. I knew Laney was running away from an abusive situation and she would sneak onto a wagon train, but that’s all I knew. Other times, I brainstorm a story idea with my critique group, and through that, my characters start to develop.

What would you say is the most difficult part of writing a book?

Pushing through the middle part. When i start the book, I’m excited and ready to write, and the same is true at the ending when I’m excited to finish the characters’ story. In the middle, it’s a bit harder because I realize how far I still have to go. They key is to make something exciting happen, and that gets me going again.

What do you like to do when you’re not writing?

All kinds of things. I read a lot, watch my favorite tv shows or a movie. I enjoy gardening and currently have flowers, squash, and broccoli growing in my gardens. I love to travel too. I also handmake cards for friends and 3-D pictures from card stock.

What does your family think of your writing?

My husband is proud of me, but my boys don’t say much about it.

Do you base your characters on real people?

Only in that I may include a trait that someone has. In A Wagonload of Trouble, which is one of my few contemporary stories, my hero is a computer nerd like my husband, and he jingles the coins in his pocket like my husband used to do.

Have you experienced writer’s block, and how do you handle it?

I haven’t experienced it very often, but I’ve learned the key for me is to walk away from my computer and do something else. I give the story time to percolate in my brain.

What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating your books?

Since writing is a solitary job, I didn’t expect to make so many friends along the way. I met many of them at writers conferences that I attended annually.

How many books have you written?

54 books and novellas.

Where can readers find out more about you and your books?

You can find my books on Amazon. Just look up: Vickie McDonough books. They are also listed on my website, although I confess that I need to update it. http://www.vickiemcdonough.com

Any current or upcoming projects you’d like to tell us about?

Secrets of the Heart, book two in my Windswept Weddings series, released last month. It is the sequel to Mutiny of the Heart. You can get it on Amazon. Christmas Mail-Order Brides is a novella collection that I wrote with my friends Carrie Turansky and Susan Page Davis. It recently released, and you can also find it on Amazon. It is free on KU.

Blog Stops

Pens Pages & Pulses, November 18

Holly’s Book Corner, November 18

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, November 19

Simple Harvest Reads, November 20 (Guest Review from Marilyn)

Texas Book-aholic, November 21

Lyssa Loves Books, November 21

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, November 22

Abba’s Prayer Warrior Princess, November 23

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, November 24

Book Holds and Jello Molds, November 24

For Him and My Family, November 25

Devoted To Hope, November 26

Stories By Gina, November 27 (Author Interview)

Books Less Travelled, November 28

Cover Lover Book Review, November 29

The Mommies Reviews, November 29

Locks, Hooks and Books, November 30

Artistic Nobody, December 1 (Guest Review from Donna)

Pause for Tales, December 1

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Vickie is giving away the grand prize of a $50 Amazon Gift Card!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://promosimple.com/ps/3dc73/dueling-hearts-celebration-tour-giveaway